Fuel-supply means for internal-combustion engines



Jan. 20, 1925 Y 1,523,731

A. C. STEWART FUEL SUPPLY MEANS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES FiledSept. '7, 1920 2 Sheets-Sheet l (III) ig. I.

INVENTOR fllfred GSZewari ATTORNEY A. c. STEWART I FUEL SUPPLY MEANS FORINTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES Filed Sept. 7, 1920 2 Shuts-Sheet 2 IN VENTOR. fllfred C. S/ewari W p ATTORNEY.

- the intake. valve oftheengine, so that a entering at theintake of theengine. cylinof the usual carbureters.

of operation the controlof tl eengineis Patented Jan. 20, 1925. I l

" UNITED srATEsf PATENT. 0F

7 ALFRED-C. STEWART, or LOS AnoELns', oALIroImIA,

FUEL-SUPPLY MEANS FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES.

Application :filed September 7, 1 920. -Seria1N0.4 08,693.

the operation of the engine. by "ensuring a full-supply of air at alltimes, thus insuring. maximum compression. vAnother obect oftheinvention isto provide for. economicaloperation at low. loads by admitting fuel only or especially-to the air adjacent to the admissionmeans.A further object of the invention is to providefor maximum powercapacity by admitting ad- "ditional fuel as required for heavy loads insuch manner that it will be. distributed to;

the full volume of air. A

Animportant feature of ,invention is the provision for-unrestricted airsupply to throttle is dispensed with and a fullcharge of-air isobtained, there beinggno, interfer ence with or diminution of theairsupply by throttling action. In this .case, the air der is alwayssubstantially or approximately at atmospheric. pressure 1 therebyobtaining the maximum volumetric capacity of this method.

the engine. In connection with of operation of the air inlet, I, providefor supplying fuel to the air inlet directly in a regulable manner, but.without, requiringsuction of the fuel by apartialvacuum at the airinlet, such as is required in'the case With this method by means of theregulation or control of the fuel supply instead of by a throttle.Another object ofthe invention is to ensure effective combustion of themixture.

supplied to the engine, by providing for supply of fuel adJacent to. theignition means. I

In the operation tion engine of this typewhere-there is no and the ,mainobject of the. invention'ls to provide for maxlmum economy 1n.-

of an internal combus throttling of the air, and the suct-ional elfect ion the earbureter is, therefore, reduced. to a mlnimunnthe diflicultyarises that in operation with anminimum fuel supply under light load,for example, effective ignitionis not always secured, on account of.the: dilution of the mixture, the dilution being due tothe fullvolumetric supply ,ofair, to 'gether with the lack of strong suction of,fuel into the engine. Inorde'r to overcome this objection l provideforsupplying a.

certain amount of mixture to the engine cylinder .at a point adjacent tothespark plug-,orlign1tion device so as to ensure, efiectiveignitionthereof, and. alsoiprbvide for. supplying anadditional amount offuel to the cylinder along withv airi'according to the requirementsofthe engine so that when the load onthe engine is decreased this'additionalsupply of mixture may: bev .cut down but the minimum supplyof fuel is always maintained in such position relative .to the ignition.device as to ensure effectivev ignition under all conditions,

.The accompanying draw ngs .1llustrate embodiments of my invention, andrefer ring thereto: Fig. .1..is ,a vertical section of part of an enginecylinderprovided with my improved trol; i 0 Fig. 2 is asectionon line-2- '2-in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section of a fuel supply meanslacfcordingto myinvention adapted for automatic control, a portion of'theen theretobeing.

gine cylinder connected shown in elevation.

Referring-to Fig. '1, the engine cylinder indicated at lis provided withanairinlet 2, :which communicates with .the cylinder 1 through aninletport 3 controlled by, an

fuel supply means adapted for. manual coninwardly opening valve lnormally' heldclosed by spring 5and adapted to be opened in thesuctionor intake stroke of the engine in the usual'manner. In thepresent-case,

this inlet is freely open to the atmosphere,

except for-the automatic valve 4, there being 4 no throttling or otherobstruction to the,

passage of the incoming air. Meansareq'orovidedfor supplying fueldirectly to this inlet 2 and also for supplying liquid fuel at a pointadjacent to the ignition device or.

' a passage. r for conducting liquid fuel to'the o ening 8 between thepoint: 9 o f I the sparkp ug and asurrounding metallicsleeve -10thereof, said passage communicating by aconduit 11 with a'check valve12to which a} g I g supply is required, valve 14 is operated to ipe' 13leads from the fuel controlvalvel. gaid, fuel control valve has 'a fuelinlet 15; to the fuel outlet 16 through passages 21, 26

communicating with any suitable source of liquid fuel supply and isconnected on one hand with an outlet a 0 air inlet 2 aforesaid, jsaidair-inlet belng hand .with outlet pise 13, and onthe other "preferablycontracted adj acent to this fuel outlet" duct-16' to' increase theentrain'ing' ef+= fec't'onthe fuel'delivere'd atisaid outletlThe,valve'14fis' manually controlled in any suit able manner, "for"example, by means of an a-rmll7 ionzthe plug 18 of said val e, sa darmbeing connected by rod 1 9"to any siiit;-" able operating means,suclras apedal o'r f handle convenientpositio'n for manual or, 25

.' and 'with radial passages '25 and 26"le ading,

res ecti'vely, t io circumferential channels 2'1 1 van 28, which taperor decrease in cross secstroke in said cylinder;

not 16 opening into the I the pipe 13' passes through*tl1e* check pipe{11 and "passage -7 to theengine cyhnderat, a point ad ws 'jacenti'tothe spark plu'g'--'andthe fuel" p'ass ing: from-the outlet "LG entersthe a ir passing "through the air .iiilet tube directly-to fthe' enginecylinder, inlet-valve 4 being open" at -.-this time'and the velocity ofthejairbeing sufficient to ensure mixture ofthe fuel with ped al'-operation. Valve 14*may' be of suitg mitted ,inthis-I'natter canbe-co'ntrolled' by effected immediately upon increase of presi sure inthe enginecylindcr. The fuel pipe 13 is, therefore, in communicationwith the engine cylinder only during the suction The-v operation" of:the "invention, r as above described, is as follows: .In startmg-theeng1ne, or \vhen a tull tuel open communication from-the i'uel inlet 15and'f28, as we'll a's towfuel pipe 13 through stroke of the enginethei'uel'supply through valve-.12 and the the-"incoming "air; The amountof fuel ad f decrease the {size of the assages cayenne- [28 opposite thefuel anti 7 of these passages providingf-for tliis contro'l, "andby this"means the 'an'iountof fuelpas's ing directly" to the air inlet valve 4and also i i the amount of 'iu'elf passing" to the cylinder adjacent-tothe sparkplug ma be'cut 'do'vvn able"constructiom' for example, it maytong: operating "the,v alveila so aslto increase'o Y sistf of 'a'cylinder plug member 18 mounted to rotate withinacylindrical casing-20,said plug" member-having an axial bore "21 00m :municating vvitlrthefuel inlet 15 aforesaid,

tionfro'rnrone'endto' the other, as js'howni -fThe'Jcha'nnel28 :ivhichcooperatesvvith the fuel outlet 16*i's referably shorter thanptliechannel 27 whic cooperates with' the -fucla- "simultaneously; 1 There"being noi throttle, the full VOlUIIIGiZIiCEGaPEtCitY of the engine-cylinde'r is' utilized 'in dravvin'g in the charge, so that niaxiniu-nr"volumetric-etlioutlet 13', so that communication 'With" the outlet 13is maintained after the fueli's"shut g I g the Ignition means toensfure"complete' 'fand' oif from the outlet 16.

ohc k,- va1ve-12 maybe ing quick action" in closing the fcheck valveon'increaseof pressure in the cylinder, "I jmayuse' the form' sl1o\'vn'-in--Figl; '1 ofthe v drawing, which"*comprises' a valve plug'3'O Ihaving a stem 29 "mounted fto 'slide in guide 31 and adapted. tocooperate 'with-a'valve seat "32 to shut offcommunication between" valvechamber 33 communicatin with the pipe 13 find the fuel pipe .l1leadingtothe engine,- *Saidfvalv'e is normally held in open" position' fby theaction of gravity, supple-T men'te'd, if desired, by theaction ofsuitable spring "means, and is iinovedi i to closed fposi t1on on the1n'crease of pressure -1'njl the" pipe "llcommunicatin with the engine-fby'communic'ation-"of "the gases under" pressure "through a bore 35 1nsaid valve "to" a Cllilln ClIlCy is obtained, and under all conditionsthere is suflic'ient fuel-suppli d adj ace'nt to engine; isrunningyveryilight the valve plug 18 is operated to shutfofi'communication to the ,fuel outlet-16; leaving the'pas'sage stillincommunication ivith the port leading'tothe fuel pipe' 13','so thatuncler'these-"1 circumstances{ac'ei'tain""amount of liquid I fuel isstill-supplied?-to' the"engine cylinder 7 adjacent to the ignition:device or spark plug 'Witlr'the result 'tlratevenZ'witlr this 1 e ta eis secured adj 2 Spark plug 'e andrapid tg' if fi all to ensure elfecti'of the ,t'ueli i ply'iS to a largeext'ent automatic. For-thispurpose,reconstruction, such as shown in" F 1g. 3,-may be employedgtheengine c'ylin- 1v1yirrventifoa1msi also-be'carriedoutin 1 V i suchmanner 'thatthe control of the fuel 'sup-"beif-36-.extenc;ling'below'adiaphragmir37 con-jder=1,'in;thisIcase,"being-provided with an *"necte'det'o 'said'valve, the upper faceo'f'this' air inlet 38 connectingwith theflengine-cyli Y I diaphragnrfbeing exposed-to atmospheric"inderthiro uglra"spi'ingclosedintakevalve4" pressure; 'fAsT't-he area of thisidiaphif'agnris and having avalve seat 39 cooperating 'With 2 much 'g'reater' 'than that; of the valve, 'rapid a valvemeinber 40;'*w111h iscarried 'by a andpositive-closing ofthe "check valve is stem 41:"providedvvith 'two'valve cones 42 I and 43, which cooperate, respectively, with valve-seats44 and 45 to control the fuel sup ply, respectively, to the air inlet 38and to a fuel pipe 47 leading to a check valve 48, which is incommunication with the engine cylinder adjacent to the ignition device49."

The air inlet valve member 40.is adapted to be operated by thedifference in pressure existing between the outer end of the valvemember and the inner portion thereof ex posed to the reduced pressure inthe air inlet 38, so that this air inlet valve member tends to rise andopen the airinlet in proportion as the suction in the air inlet duringthe suction stroke increases and this operation of the air inlet valvemember 40 produces a corresponding operation of the fuel controllingvalve cones 42 and 43, whereby the amount of fuel supplied directly tothe en-' gine through the check valve 48 and adjacent to the ignitiondevice 49 is controlled in correspondence with the amount of air passingto the engine through the air inlet valve and the air intake valve 4.Fuel passes 'to the valve casing 50 of the fuel valves above describedfrom a pipe 51 leading from a fioat chamber, or other source of liquidfuel, and theamount of fuel thus supplied may be controlled by amanually operated valve 53 having an arm 54 connected for operation-byany suitable means.

Fuel passes from the valve casing 50 between the valve members 43 and 45to fueloutlet pipe 47 and also passes from said valve casing 50 througha longitudinal bore 58 in the valve stem 41, and through a lateralpassage 59 to a chamber 60 from which it passes from the valve cone 42and valve seat 45 to the upper end of the air inlet valve casing 61, soas to be mixed with the air passing through said air inlet directly tothe engine cylinder. The valve cone 42 is so positioned that in itsdescent it contracts the opening between it and the valve seat 45 andeventually said opening is substantially closed by a cylindrical portionof the valve stem passing within the valve seat; at this time, however,the valve cone 43 still permits a certain amount of fuel to pass fromthe fuel chamber or casing 50 to the outlet pipe 47 leading'through acheck valve 48 to the cylinder adjacent to the ignition device 49.

Check valve 48, as illustrated in Fig. 3, is similar to the check valveabove described comprising a valve member 63 mounted in casing 64 andconnected to a diaphragm 65 which is operated by pressure in a chamber66 communicating by passage 67 with a pipe 70 leading to the spark plug49. Said valve casing 64 is in this case provided, in addi-- struction'air is driven into the engine cylinder adjacent totthe spark plug,.alongwith the fuel, soas to. provide for better distribution and combustionof the fuel.

What I clain'ris: r

1. In combination with an internal combustion engine cylinder, an airintake valve and ignition means, a fuel supply means provided with afuel outlet in communication with the engine cylinder adjacent to theignition means thereof, and with a fuel outlet communicating with theengine cylinder through the said air intake valve, and a manuallyoperated fuel control valve provided with passages for simultaneouscontrol of the supply of fuel to said outlets and for maintaining fuelsupply to the engine adjacent the ignition means after the fuel supplyto the engine through the air inlet valve is shut off.

2. In combination with an internal combustion engine cylinder providedwith ignition means and with an air inlet valve in direct andunobstructed communication with the outer air, and adapted to be openedantomatically by the suction in the engine cylinder, and a manuallyoperated fuel supply valve provided with a fuel outlet in communicationwith the engine cylinder adjacent-to said ignition means, and with afuel outlet communicating with the engine cylinder through said airinlet valve, said valve being provided with means for simultaneouscontrol of a supply of fuel to said outlets.

3. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 2, wherein said valve isconstructed and arranged to maintain fuel supply to the engine adjacentto the ignition means after the fuel supply to the engine through theair inlet valve is shut off.

4. In combination with an internal combustion engine cylinder providedwith ignition means and with an air inlet having a valve adapted to beopened automatically by the suction in the engine cylinder, said valvebeing in direct unobstructed communication with the outer air, means forsupplying fuel to said air inlet at a point further removed from thecylinder than said valve, means for supplying fuel to the cylinderadjacent the ignition means, and a single manually controlled valvemeans for regulating the supply of fuel both to the last named fuelsupply means and to the fuel supply means for the air inlet.

, 5. In combination with the cylinder of an internal combustion engineprovided with ignition means, means for supplying liquid fuel to saidcylinder at a point adjacent the ignition means therefor,a check valvein said prising a valve casing having seat; avalve member coqperat mgwlth -s'a1d seat; and

v adapted' tofbpen outwardly fivitli respegit to' [the cylinder;apre'ssi u'e blizjnnblel cdihmuni ca'tinglwith the interior of said'by-linderyr v and means exposed to then'iprgssure in said scribed my;name thi's 27th" day-:01, jAuguSt," f V

